Afghanistan

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Afghanistan about the situation of Afghan Christians who face arrest and execution.

Lord Howell of Guildford: We are aware of reports of the Deputy Secretary of the Afghan Lower House of Parliament's remarks regarding a call for the execution of Christian converts from Islam. The remarks were made during a debate over a recent series of Afghan television reports, which showed video footage of Afghans converting to Christianity. As a result, two international non-government organisations (Norwegian Church Aid and Church World Services) have been accused of proselytising and are currently under investigation by Afghan authorities. Under Afghan law, proselytising is illegal and conversion from Islam is a capital offence. We are following the investigation closely, but cannot pre-empt the findings at this stage.
	The Government are opposed to the death penalty under all circumstances and continues to strive for the global abolition of capital punishment. The Government also strongly support the right to freedom of religion or belief, including full implementation of those norms laid out in Article 2 of the Afghan Constitution which provides for freedom of religion. As an EU member, the UK adopted a set of EU council conclusions on Freedom of Religion or Belief. These conclusions reaffirm the EU's commitment to promote and protect freedom of thought, conscience, religion or belief, including the right to adopt, change or abandon one's religion or belief, of one's own free will. The Government are working to support all individuals who face discrimination and persecution on the basis of religion, including Christians, wherever they are in the world. Pending the outcome of the investigation, we will raise this matter with the Afghan Government as necessary. We are not aware of any reports of converts to Christianity being tried or executed for apostasy in Afghanistan.

Airports: Holding Rooms

Baroness Stern: To ask Her Majesty's Government why airside passes were not issued at the time the Independent Monitoring Board took up its duties in June 2009 to monitor the holding room at Birmingham airport.

Baroness Neville-Jones: The issue of airside passes is controlled by Birmingham International Airport acting under the guidance of the Department for Transport. Aviation security records show that the deputy head of the Secretariat for the IMB chair contacted the airport management in July 2009 to enquire about the process for obtaining passes and explaining the statutory role of the IMB.
	The airport contacted the Department for Transport to clarify the role of the IMB, which did not appear amongst the list of statutory bodies held by DfT. It would seem that an initial delay arose whilst clarification was sought over the use by the IMB of the phrase "exemption".
	The DfT corresponded directly with the IMB to explain that exempted status was confined to a small number of groups seeking access to airside areas, for example armed police patrols.
	All other persons, including control agencies, are subject to body and baggage searches. Once it had been confirmed that IMB members were not seeking exempt status, to which they would not have been entitled, the process for obtaining passes was set in train. A further delay ensued because, as with all applicants for passes, references had to be obtained and a suitable sponsor identified. Local UKBA management only learnt of the issue in late October 2009 and immediately intervened to support the pass application process. At no time was there was any objection in principle to the issuing of the passes.

Asylum Seekers

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government why they do not accept new applications for asylum by post when personal circumstances change or the situation in the country of origin deteriorates.

Baroness Neville-Jones: In February 2003 the previous Government announced that anyone wishing to make an asylum claim would need to do so in person, and postal applications for asylum would no longer be accepted. This change was made as part of the reform of the asylum system and sought to minimise potential abuse. Although we expect individuals to make their claim at a port of entry, it ensures that those who submit a claim for asylum as their circumstances have changed whilst in the UK, are properly introduced to the asylum system.
	The applicant is fingerprinted and photographed and the identity of the applicant is verified. This also ensures that cases are routed quickly to the responsible case owner to progress the case.

Bank of England

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the last disclosed basic annual salary and bonus of (a) the Governor of the Bank of England, (b) the current two Deputy Governors, and (c) the Chief Executive of the Financial Services Authority.

Lord Sassoon: Information on the annual salaries and bonuses of the Governor and Deputy Governors of the Bank of England for 2009-10 is shown in the table below. Further information is available in the Bank of England's 2010 annual report.
	
		
			  Salary (£) Benefits (£) Total (£) 
			 Mervyn King Governor 302,885 2,878 305,764 
			 Charlie Bean Deputy Governor 252,497 1,795 254,292 
			 Paul Tucker Deputy Governor 252,497 5,617 257,664 
		
	
	Information on the annual salary and bonus of the Chief Executive of the Financial Services Authority (FSA) for 2009-10 is shown in the table below. Further information is published in the FSA's 2010 annual report.
	
		
			  Salary (£) Performance Related Bonus (£) Other emoluments and benefits (£) Total (£) 
			 Hector Sants 500,000 108,000 134,011 742,011

Banking

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have had discussions with United Kingdom banks, their directors, or trade associations on the impact on their competitiveness of the European Central Bank making funding available to banks in the eurozone at a low cost.

Lord Sassoon: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings and discussions with a range of key stakeholders as part of the process of policy development and delivery. As was the case with previous administrations, the Government do not disclose the outcome or results of all such meetings and discussions.

Banks

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government at what stage they begin monitoring the sale of a local bank or any part of a bank.

Lord Sassoon: The sale of banks, local banks and parts of banks are monitored by government departments and other public institutions, including HM Treasury, the Financial Services Authority, the Bank of England and the Office of Fair Trading, in line with their individual objectives, powers and responsibilities. These frameworks are typically set out in legislation and applied by the relevant department or institution on a case-by-case basis.

Council Tax

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what guidance they will issue to local authorities about the provision of local services in the light of the council tax freezes.

Baroness Hanham: The Government believe that democratically elected local authorities are perfectly capable of taking decisions about the provision of local services. We therefore have no plans to issue any such guidance.

Courts Service: Estates

Lord Corbett of Castle Vale: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the cost to public funds of compensation payments to contractors, consultants and suppliers of the decision not to proceed with building a replacement magistrates' court in central Birmingham.

Lord McNally: It is not anticipated that any compensation payments will be due to contractors, consultants and suppliers as a result of the decision to defer the building of a replacement magistrates' court in central Birmingham. The deferment will require discussion with the various landowners and, accordingly, we are currently taking advice regarding our options.

Courts Service: Estates

Lord Corbett of Castle Vale: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much was paid for the purchase of land for building a replacement magistrates' court in central Birmingham; and what estimate has been made of its current value.

Lord McNally: A long lease for the Masshouse site was purchased for £13.48 million plus VAT in June 2009. It is estimated that in line with the overall property market adjustments since the agreement to purchase the site was made, its current value may be slightly lower. We are taking advice regarding our options.

Courts Service: Estates

Lord Corbett of Castle Vale: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to dispose of land purchased for the building of a replacement magistrates' court in central Birmingham.

Lord McNally: As the replacement magistrates' court scheme has only been deferred currently there are no plans to dispose of the site. However, we are taking advice on the options available to Her Majesty's Government.

Crown Prosecution Service

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government , further to the Written Answer by Lord Wallace of Tankerness on 16 June (WA 114), what action they are taking to recruit men to the Crown Prosecution Service to improve the gender balance in the service.

Lord Wallace of Tankerness: In common with other departments, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has frozen all external recruitment of permanent, interim and agency staff, with possible exceptions for business-critical and front-line delivery posts. Any recruitment we undertake is in accordance with the Civil Service Commissioners' recruitment principles and appointments are made on merit, following fair and open competition. The CPS is committed to promoting equality and diversity in employment and development of staff. The CPS reviews its employment data to ensure that our workforce is representative and takes necessary action in the light of evidence and trends. Gender balance in employment is reviewed regularly as part of regular assessment of the CPS's Diversity Delivery Plan.

Crown Prosecution Service

Lord Corbett of Castle Vale: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will review the impact of cash limits on the ability of the Crown Prosecution Service to bring criminal prosecutions.

Lord Wallace of Tankerness: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) is funded at an appropriate level for 2010-11 to effectively discharge its obligations in the prosecution of criminal offences and the recovery of criminal assets. Funding for future years will be determined as part of the 2010 spending review process.

Elections: Voting System

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will disallow Irish citizens who have an address in the United Kingdom but who are entitled to vote in the Republic of Ireland from voting in elections in the United Kingdom.

Lord McNally: Irish citizens are eligible to vote in parliamentary, European parliamentary and local government elections if they are resident in the UK. Residence at a particular address within an area for electoral registration purposes is for the local Electoral Registration Officer to determine.
	This position reflects the historic ties which exist between Ireland and the United Kingdom. Since 1985 British citizens resident in the Republic have been entitled to vote in elections to the Irish Parliament. The Government have no plans to change the voting rights of Irish citizens at Westminster elections.

Embryology

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 15 June (WA 100), which licences issued by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority originally related to the derivation of embryonic stem cells; and how many of those licences subsequently included the use of human embryos for unrelated purposes.

Earl Howe: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has advised that it has issued 23 research licences where the aim of the research was to derive human embryonic stem cell lines. None of the persons responsible for these licences have applied to alter their licences to include the use of human embryos for unrelated purposes.

Embryology

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Thornton on 9 November 2009 (WA 111) regarding the numbers of eggs used for research, whether the full reconciliation undertaken by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) explained how the number of eggs described in a published research paper was greater than the number contributed to research according to HFEA records.

Earl Howe: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) has advised that it is not required in law to collect and hold information about the use of eggs in research. The information it does hold is, therefore, incomplete and limited.

Further Education: Vocational Qualifications

Lord Corbett of Castle Vale: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many vocational qualifications were awarded in 2009; and how many were awarded the previous two years.

Baroness Wilcox: In the 2008-09 academic year, over 3 million vocational qualifications were awarded. In 2007-08 over 2.4 million vocational qualifications were awarded, and in 2006-07 over 2 million vocational qualifications were awarded. This information was published in the Data Service's March 2010 Statistical First Release.

Gaza Flotilla

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Israel about the passports, mobile telephones and cameras confiscated from United Kingdom citizens who were on board the Mavi Mamara in the recent flotilla to Gaza.

Lord Howell of Guildford: My honourable friend Alistair Burt has raised these specific issues with Israel's ambassador to the UK. Our ambassador to Israel and other members of our embassy in Tel Aviv have also raised the matter on a number of occasions with the Israeli authorities. It has also been raised by the EU presidency, on behalf of EU Heads of Mission, with the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
	We can confirm we have received all three missing passports, which will be returned to the holders. We, and the EU, have also been informed by the Israelis that all the personal belongings have now been sent to Turkey, to the organisers of the Flotilla (Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Relief (Insani Yardim Vakfi), (IHH)). We understand that the Turkish authorities agree this to be correct. My honourable friend Alistair Burt explained this to the British nationals who he met on 17 June 2010.
	We have also asked exceptionally our consular staff in Istanbul to follow up with IHH which still holds over 300 pieces of unclaimed luggage, including watches, phones and cameras. Our consular staff have taken photos of everything that was seen in IHH's storage, which we will shortly be distributing to the British nationals involved so they can attempt to identify any property that is theirs.
	We have also been informed by the Israeli authorities that the return of magnetic and media equipment is under consideration by the Israeli Defence Forces. We will continue to press for its return and availability for use in the inquiry, as required by those conducting it.

Health: Assessors

Baroness Thomas of Winchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of healthcare professionals employed by Atos Healthcare are (a) doctors, and (b) nurses.

Earl Howe: The Department engages Atos Healthcare as its current provider of occupational health services. The department does not hold any personnel records for Atos Healthcare, which is a private company.

Health: Contaminated Blood Products

Lord Morris of Manchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Howe on 16 June (WA 118-19), on what date officials in the Department of Health last met officials in the Republic of Ireland's Department of Health and Children to discuss compensation for those infected with contaminated blood; which officials in both countries were involved; what record was taken of the meeting; and whether they will place the record in the Library of the House.

Earl Howe: There have been no meetings between officials in the department and officials in the Republic of Ireland's Department of Health and Children to discuss compensation for those infected with contaminated blood. However, contact has been made via telephone or in writing, most recently in February and March 2010 when confirming information for the March v Secretary of State for Health judicial review.

Housing

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to meet demand for affordable social housing by making available public housing.

Baroness Hanham: The Government recognise that there is a continued need for affordable housing and remain committed to its provision. At present the Homes and Communities Agency provides grants to housing associations, local authorities and other providers to deliver affordable homes for both social rent and low-cost home ownership. Decisions on future levels of funding for the provision of new affordable housing will be made in the spending review.

Housing Benefit

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect of the limit on housing benefit on levels of homelessness and overcrowding in family accommodation.

Baroness Hanham: The Department for Work and Pensions undertakes an assessment of the impact on specific groups as part of the policy development process. DWP will publish formal impact assessments in due course.

Independent Networks Co-operative Association Ltd

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government which departments, agencies and other organisations were requested by an official of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills to sponsor or finance Independent Networks Co-operative Association Ltd since its formation; for what purpose; and on what dates.

Baroness Wilcox: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has not approached any other department, agency or other organisation regarding the funding of the Independent Networks Co-operative Association.

Iraq

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have made representations to the Government of Iraq about the death penalty there; and whether their stance on the death penalty in Iraq is the same as their stance on the death penalty in other countries.

Lord Howell of Guildford: The UK is opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. Together with EU partners, we promote the abolition of capital punishment around the world.
	The UK regularly makes representations to the Government of Iraq on the death penalty. Our ambassador in Iraq wrote to the Iraqi President and Prime Minister on 17 May 2010 outlining our opposition to the death penalty. Along with 22 other countries, the UK raised concerns over the use of the death penalty in Iraq during Iraq's Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in February 2010. On three occasions in 2009, we joined other EU member states in delivering demarches to the Iraqi Government against the death penalty.

Legal Aid

Lord Bach: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had on the future of criminal legal aid with firms of solicitors who undertake large quantities of criminal legal aid work.

Lord McNally: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Jonathan Djanogly) who has policy responsibility for legal aid and legal services has met partners from one major criminal legal aid firm who wrote to my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor (Kenneth Clarke) shortly after the General Election.
	As set out in my Written Ministerial Statement of 23 June 2010 (Official Report, cols. WS 108-110), the Government are intending to seek views in the autumn on proposals for reform of legal aid following the internal policy assessment that is now in train.

Legislation: War

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to introduce legislation to allow Parliament to decide whether to declare war.

Lord McNally: There are no current plans to introduce legislation in this area.

Lisbon Treaty

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will investigate the balance of powers between the United Kingdom Parliament and the European Parliament following the implementation of the Lisbon treaty.

Lord Howell of Guildford: The Government are examining the case for a United Kingdom Sovereignty Bill, to make it clear that ultimate authority remains with the UK Parliament. The common law is clear-the UK Parliament is sovereign. We are examining whether the common law provides sufficient ongoing and unassailable protection for the principle of parliamentary sovereignty.

Local Government

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how they intend to work with local government to devolve power and ensure expenditure reductions.

Baroness Hanham: This Government are committed to the radical devolution of power, away from Westminster and Whitehall to local councils, communities and homes across the nation. This includes more financial freedom for local government in exchange for greater transparency and accountability to citizens. Localism and decentralisation are key priorities. They will allow radical reform and enable councils to deliver savings. Rapid progress is already being made in this balance of power shake-up, including:
	consultation with councils about where best to reduce burdens on them;a move away from the wasteful inefficiency of central targets and towards local accountability with the scrapping of comprehensive area assessment which cost taxpayers between £12 million and £39 million a year; and the introduction of a Bill to stop council restructuring in Devon, Norfolk and Suffolk which will save the taxpayer £40 million in unnecessary costs.
	The Government have already taken action on expenditure reductions by pledging to freeze council tax for 2011-12, and will seek to freeze it for a further year, in partnership with local government. The Government have also provided councils with greater flexibility for local spending decisions through removing restrictions on some £1.2 billion of grants this year. There is still a lot of potential gain through new practices, for example shared services, joint working and smarter procurement procedures. The radical town hall transparency that this Government have announced will be a driver for such change.
	In the Queen's Speech, legislation was announced which, alongside other policy changes, will devolve greater powers to councils and neighbourhoods and give local communities control over housing and planning decisions.

Local Government: Standards Board for England

Lord Greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, in view of their intention to abolish the Standards Board for England, they will instruct the board and the First-tier Tribunal (Local Government Standards in England) (a) to suspend all outstanding cases, and (b) not to accept any new cases, until the future of those bodies has been determined.

Baroness Hanham: Government cannot give instructions countermanding statute. However, we will include in the Bill to devolve greater powers to councils, announced in the Queen's Speech for this Session, provisions to repeal the legislation that established the current local authority members' conduct regime, including the Standards Board for England and the First-tier Tribunal.

Northern Ireland: Justice

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Wallace of Tankerness on 3 June (WA 9), who has the power to terminate prosecutions in Northern Ireland, to decide that sentences may be reviewed, and to review sentences.

Lord Wallace of Tankerness: A prosecution may be terminated before its conclusion in a number of ways. The prosecutor may withdraw a case or may offer no evidence. The court may also stop a case from proceeding by acceding to a defence abuse of process argument or if, at the conclusion of the prosecution's case, it considers the defendant has no case to answer. The specific power to issue a nolle prosequi-which was formerly held by the Attorney General for Northern Ireland and which acts to terminate any prosecution on indictment-was transferred on devolution of justice and policing to the Director of Public Prosecutions for Northern Ireland. The power to seek leave to refer a case to the Court of Appeal for reconsideration on the grounds of undue leniency has similarly been transferred to the director. Whether the sentence is reviewed or changed is a matter for the Court of Appeal.

Police: Cautions

Lord Corbett of Castle Vale: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many cautions were issued in each of the past five years by (a) the Metropolitan Police, (b) West Midlands Police, and (c) Greater Manchester Police.

Lord McNally: The number of offenders issued with a caution in the Metropolitan, West Midlands and Greater Manchester Police Force Areas 2004 to 2008 (latest available) can be viewed in the following table.
	Data for 2009 are planned for publication in October 2010.
	
		
			 Number of offenders issued with a caution by the Metropolitan Police, West Midlands Police and Greater Manchester Police, 2004 to 2008 (1)(2)(3) 
			 Police Force 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 
			 Metropolitan Police 31,833 35,140 43,844 48,904 50,021 
			 West Midlands 13,751 17,706 20,774 21,582 20,968 
			 Greater Manchester 12,778 13,184 13,820 13,123 11,404 
		
	
	(1) The cautions statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been cautioned for two or more offences at the same time the principal offence is the more serious offence.
	(2) From 1 June 2000 the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 came into force nationally and removed the use of cautions for persons under 18 and replaced them with reprimands and warnings. These are included in the totals.
	(3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.
	Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services in the Ministry of Justice.

Shipping: General Lighthouse Authorities

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much revenue was generated by the General Lighthouse Authorities from inspecting offshore renewable installations and oil and gas platforms in (a) 2005, (b) 2006, (c) 2007, (d) 2008, and (e) 2009; and how much has been generated this year.

Earl Attlee: None. The General Lighthouse Authorities do not levy a charge for inspection of aids to navigation. Inspections are normally undertaken by the authorities during the course of their operational activities and they therefore incur little additional expenditure.

Smoking

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the number of people who die annually in England as a result of passive smoking.

Earl Howe: An estimate of the deaths attributable to passive smoking among United Kingdom adults was published in a report by Professor Jamrozik in the British Medical Journal in 2005 (333; 812-17), which indicated that the annual number of deaths was 10,700. This evidence was cited by the Royal College of Physicians in March 2010 in their report Passive Smoking and Children, which also goes on to consider the wider health impact of passive smoking.

Terrorism

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government why they have banned a proposed visit to Britain by Dr Zakir Naik and refused to admit Dr Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips on 19 June at Heathrow.

Baroness Neville-Jones: The Home Secretary excluded Dr Naik and Mr Philips because she considered that their presence in the UK would not be conducive to the public good.
	Dr Naik has made statements justifying terrorism and fostering hatred, which provide evidence of unacceptable behaviour. Mr Philips has engaged in unacceptable behaviour by fomenting and justifying terrorism and seeking to provoke others to commit terrorist acts.

Visas

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what were the 20 countries from which the most foreign students were granted visas last year; what were the numbers of visas granted in each case; what proportion were for study at public sector colleges; and what proportion for private sector colleges.

Baroness Neville-Jones: The number of student visas issued in 2009 to the top 20 nationalities is shown in the attached table.
	We are unable to identify from central records what proportion of the applicants intended to study at colleges in (a) the private sector or (b) the public sector.
	
		
			 Student Visas issued in 2009* 
			 Rank Nationality Issued 
			 1 India 58,233 
			 2 China 37,251 
			 3 Bangladesh 17,456 
			 4 United States 14,790 
			 5 Pakistan 12,684 
			 6 Nigeria 11,210 
			 7 Saudi Arabia 10,651 
			 8 Nepal 10,107 
			 9 Philippines 7,723 
			 10 Malaysia 6,205 
			 11 Turkey 5,841 
			 12 South Korea 5,739 
			 13 Sri Lanka 5,553 
			 14 Thailand 4,737 
			 15 Japan 4,380 
			 16 Colombia 4,140 
			 17 Taiwan 3,799 
			 18 Hong Kong 3,532 
			 19 Canada 3,206 
			 20 Russia 3,140 
		
	
	* excludes dependents and student visitors
	The data in this table is based on management information and as such has not been quality assured. It is provisional and subject to change.